Film Reviews by FP

Perhaps it takes someone from outside the Anglosphere to consider the pseudo-blasphemous proposition, How can I improve on Shakespeare? Kurosawa does so, in three vital ways: he shows us a friendship between his Macbeth (Washizu) and Banquo (Miki); he deepens and fully explicates the motives of Washizu and Lady Washizu (in particular, they attempt to thwart the prophecy by conceiving a child); to do the latter, he stretches the timeline. Washizu's fall is therefore less precipitous than Macbeth's and more clearly motivated by grief, both at what he's done and what has happened to him.

The performances, particularly of Ishizu Yamada as Lady Washizu, are extraordinary. The Witch is genuinely terrifying. Washizu being murdered by his own men, instead of a vengeful Macduff, is another fascinating change from the play, focusing on the feudal lord as a lord of men: when he loses the faith of the men, he's doomed. Yet, that only highlights the social tragedy of the play: that Macbeth/Washizu is able to get away with so much for so long, with the tacit support of his men, is still more chilling.